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From: jg@zorch.crl.dec.com (Jim Gettys)
Newsgroups: comp.periphs.scsi,comp.sys.dec
Subject: Re: Is DEC RZ23 real SCSI?
Keywords: Does DEC use some odd proprietary controller query scheme?
Message-ID: <5465@crltrx.crl.dec.com>
Date: 4 Jun 90 18:08:15 GMT
References: <1990Jun2.213812.13909@spock.UUCP> <5454@crltrx.crl.dec.com> <136580@sun.Eng.Sun.COM> <5461@crltrx.crl.dec.com> <136590@sun.Eng.Sun.COM>
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Reply-To: jg@zorch.crl.dec.com (Jim Gettys)
Organization: DEC Cambridge Research Lab
Lines: 28

Matt, I think we are converging on general agreement...

Short of making signals run more slowly, or slowing down interrupt
response (something I doubt you'd be willing to do), the kind of
problems we were seeing weren't fixable in host software.

Sounds like you've had somewhat better luck than we did (or your
machines are slower :-)).

In any case, general experience shows that disk incompatibilty problems
have been diminishing with time, and are much less a problem than they
once were.  I've heard much more often recently of things plugging in
and working fine than was true 20 months ago.

And to answer Steven Parkes question about booting...

Ultrix boots just fine off of other people's disks.  The only problem I
am aware of is doing an initial installation of Ultrix onto someone
else's disk is more involved (since Ultrix won't know anything about the
disk, at the time it needs to).  Even this can be worked around if you
are sufficiently motivated/informed; it is the same procedure needed
when installing on an RZ56 or RZ57 under Ultrix 3.0 or 3.1, which won't
be able to recognise the disks.

Generally, the easiest solution is to hook up the other disk to an
existing machine, and set the disk up there, and recable, rather than do
a fresh install.
				- Jim